Getting an account at a good private BitTorrent tracker can be quite a challenge. Some people make a habit out of it, checking dozens of torrent sites every day. Others prefer more automated ways, such as using trackerchecker, a website that monitors over 500 private BitTorrent trackers.

Unlike public BitTorrent sites, private trackers are only available to registered members. Depending on a site’s popularity and growth strategy, the work involved in becoming a member can range from ‘easy’, right up to ‘almost impossible’. In the past we’ve mentioned tools and sites that can help users to find private trackers that are open to new members, but none of them covers as many sites as trackerchecker does.

Trackerchecker (update: url removed as the site’s dead and linking to suspicious software) is pretty straightforward. It is basically a huge list of private trackers which are ranked based on their signup status. The sites that have a green dot are open to the public, the red dot indicates that new members are not accepted at the moment. Towards the bottom of the site it lists private trackers that return a 404 error or a server timeout, indicated by a red cross and a blue dot respectively.

What’s most impressive about the site is that it lists and checks over 500 private trackers. Thus far we haven’t seen any similar tools that check this many sites, and there is probably a private tracker for every niche – from Slosoul.net through Pornbay.org to Traillertorrent.com – the list goes on and on. To keep the list growing, Trackerchecker allows users to register (no invite needed) so they can add missing trackers to the list.

Overall we can conclude that the site works well and it’s certainly a great resource. The only downside is that you still have to visit the Trackerchecker site to see which trackers are open. An email alert option might be a welcome addition. The “Tracker Checker” application is a good alternative for those people who prefer to have some software installed to check the signup status of private trackers.